


Escort Mission

by loveiscosmicsin



Category: Final Fantasy 15, Final Fantasy XV, Kingsglaive, Kingsglaive: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: F/M, Gen, No Kingsglaive Spoilers, budding friendship/romance, lunyx
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-09-02
Updated: 2016-09-02
Packaged: 2018-08-12 12:35:46
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,838
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7934788
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/loveiscosmicsin/pseuds/loveiscosmicsin
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Nyx thought that he had the easiest assignment handed to him, but the glaive couldn't be any more mistaken by underestimating the Oracle.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Escort Mission

**Author's Note:**

> From my tumblr: Okay, I hope this free write won’t make anyone cry this time… I’ll leave that to the future drabbles I’ve planned. I did this one on impulse based off an ask @stephanythedramaqueen showed me containing a LuNyx headcanon. I give credit to @newtscarf for the idea and since I didn’t ask you if I could write it, I can delete this if this was too much or if it’s terrible. I just got too excited that I really, really wanted to respond with a Drabble, albeit a messy one-shot. I’m not the best at recommending songs and I don’t wanna push my luck just in case someone disagrees with my choices. I’m glad that “Days and Moons” was an acceptable LuNyx song. But I love getting song recommendations!
> 
> No Kingsglaive spoilers, I promise.  
> I am more active on my main tumblr blog than I am on Ao3.

You took me to your favourite place on Earth  
To see the tree they cut down ten years from your birth.  
Our fingers traced in circles round its history,  
We brushed our hands right back in time through centuries.  
As you held me down, you said:  
“I’ll see you in the future when we’re older  
And we are full of stories to be told.  
Cross my heart and hope to die,  
I’ll see you with your laughter lines.”  
\- “Laughter Lines” by Bastille

-

When Nyx Ulric found Lunafreya Nox Fleuret alone and scribbling on a sheet of parchment in the library, he crept up beside her, undetected, before announcing his presence.

“This is the fifth time I’ve caught you out of bed.”

The Tenebraen Princess Oracle let out an involuntary gasp of surprise as she nearly fell out of her seat. Settling on an undignified glare that Nyx shrugged off, she placed a hand over her heaving chest.

“You… How did you find me?”

“It’s not hard to find someone who can’t get very far on a crutch.” Nyx indicated with a jerk of his chin. He wondered if he should tie her down, it was a tempting enough idea.

Before Luna’s arrival to Lucis, Nyx and his superior, Titus Drautos, encountered monsters on the road and the Oracle’s safety had been compromised as a result. Her injuries were not life-threatening, she suffered a couple fractured ribs, a broken arm and leg, as well as a couple scratches here and there. Nothing that a prescription of bed rest and potions could fix in time without any permanent consequences. The Kingsglaive general took all responsibility for the incident despite his subordinate wishing to share the reprimands as well. But because of the general and Lucii monarch’s grace, Nyx was still able to mirror the Oracle’s movements as her sentinel.

“And you’re here to escort me back to the infirmary.” With a huff to demonstrate her irritation, she accomplished with finesse on the final word. “Again.”

Nyx shrugged as he took a chair across the table, turned it so its back faced her before taking a seat. “Libertus’ feeling lonely.” Mentioning his best friend, he thought briefly of Libertus’ broken leg and how badly he was itching to return to duty. How hard an elite guard had fallen, reduced a pseudo-resident of the infirmary who pestered the medics to no end into writing a note that he was healed. Where Luna should be at right now.

“You’re not going to get better if you keep moving around like that. I thought I would get the easiest bodyguard assignment if my charge stayed in one spot. Man, I love to be proven wrong.”

Luna sighed, “My apologies, Nyx. I know I’m a burden, for what happened back in Tenebrae and for you having to hound me to going back to bed. I can see now that was in your job description.” She studied the parchment she had been working on, pooled in ebony ink because of when Nyx had startled her, her hand knocked over the container. The Oracle’s left hand reached over to pull out some tissues and begun dabbing at the mess.

Nyx placed his hand over hers. “Hold on,” He cast a suspicious glance at the empty sling around her neck and the stationery beside her right hand. He knew that right hand was the dominant one she used. “Didn’t you break that arm?”

“My arm’s broken but I can still move my wrist to write.” Luna continued wiping at the table when Nyx released her hand.

He had offered to retrieve some towels. “You’re still going to be here when I come back, right? No more disappearing acts on my watch?” He demanded in a serious tone, hesitating to voluntarily leave her side so soon.

Luna smiled, a little too sickeningly sweet for his taste. “I’ll be right here. I doubt I can do any more to shake you off, injured or well.” She cheekily waved at him. “Unless you worry that someone will come to eat me in the Royal Library, I should accompany you.”

Nyx rolled his eyes. Out of the princesses and Oracles he could have been ordered to guard he got the comedian who vexed him to no end. But true to her word, she remained seated and waited for his return like a good girl. He got started at cleaning up the abstract ink blobs gathered on the wooden surface. Unfortunately, her parchment could not be saved but she didn’t seem distraught.

“So, uh,” Nyx watched Luna pick up a sheet of fresh paper, set some paper weights, and guide her a feather pen to her right hand. “What were you working on earlier?” In this day in age, it’s rare to find people write by hand anymore, turning to computers to dictate their thoughts unless a document asked for a personal signature. Luna was writing on a full sheet of paper by hand with an antiquated instrument.

“A letter.” She replied without looking up from her work as she dipped the tip of her pen in ink. Her calligraphy danced about with enthralling form even when she had to assist her injured arm across the page.

Nyx was impressed by the swiftness and elaborate style she possessed that he nearly forgot about offering his assistance. “If you want, I can show you to a computer or a voice recognition program that could help.” He could have offered his own services. His handwriting was nothing more than chocobro scratch, hieroglyphics that would take hours to decipher, but that did not stop him from asking.

She paused, smiling as her fingers played with the spine of the pen. “Thank you, but it’s a personal letter. I don’t think Gentiana would trust that it came from me if it’s written any other way.”

“Gentiana?”

“My most trusted confidant and attendant.” She explained. “She would worry if she didn’t hear from me every few days.” Luna rested her chin as though she was contemplating her next written thoughts. “I haven’t told her about my injuries so it would be suspicious if I sent a letter home typed up. She asserted that if anything happened to me that she would take the first freighter to Lucis.”

“This attendant of yours sounds…” Nyx paused, he wanted to say strict and overbearing, but that wasn’t the right word to put it. He can see that he was just another of the Oracle’s victims in being at her side. “like she cares about your safety.”

“Yes, she’s who I would call my family.”

“What’s with those symbols there?” Nyx pointed at what the Oracle scribbled down. “Riddles… Gibberish… Just what are you writing?”

“Gentiana and I came up with a system of how we communicate just in case someone was monitoring us. We draw pictures, cross out words that don’t make sense, and discard the letters afterwards. If you want, I could teach you this system. You’ll find them uninteresting. Childish, maybe.”

The challenge piqued his interest and he was not going to back down from it. “I’m interested. What’s the message say?”

“I’m letting her know that I’ve been given nothing but the best of Lucian hospitality. I asked about how she was and if Umbra and Pryna missed me.” Her lilac eyes glimmered mischievously. “And that I have an austere and inquisitive bodyguard who does more than watch my every move. I’m most certain that she would like you.”

Nyx grumbled under his breath. Judging by her sly tone, he knew this Gentiana would regard him in a more negative light. There would be no support group or unity in response to the Oracle’s reckless whims. Just how would he get by? “All right. I get it. I’ll just get back to watching quietly. When you’re done, it’s back to bed with you.”

“Wait.” She pouted, the light of her mirth gone. “I can’t stay bedridden like this. I came to Lucis for a reason.”

“And you addressed it clearly enough to His Majesty. But until you’re better, I can’t risk you wandering about. Forget about me taking you back home or to Altissia.”

“There’s a million things I could be doing and I rather not spend most of the time in bed. I have obligations to my home as the Oracle that I could do here…”

“That you would hobble all over the palace for?”

“Yes and—” Luna struck the surface of the desk with her palm. “That’s it. I have an idea. Are you willing to hear my proposition?”

Nyx knew that refusing would probably be the best choice. Bargaining with your charge defeats the purpose of professionalism and what was in the best interest for them. But for once, she was displaying the maturity required in accepting his company so he saw no wrong in hearing her out.

“I’m all ears.”

“I can’t stay still and you rather not chase after me as I perform my daily duties.” She gestured to the clutch leaning against the table. “It’s difficult for me to get around so… Could you perhaps carry me? Until I’m able to get around on my own without handicaps, of course.” She rose out of her seat and her legs unsteadily buckled under her.

“No, no, no.” Nyx began, his body moved instantly and he was at the Oracle’s side, and she in his arms. She beamed at him, satisfied with her deceptive ploy. Where did this bold woman, one from a prestigious lineage and retaining the atmosphere of regality, find the candor to resort to something of this caliber? Just what thoughts ran through her mind?

He kept reminding himself that the accommodation he provided would only last several weeks, days are long but fly by quickly. He kept an impassive face whenever Libertus ran into him, greeting him with a “Didn’t recognize you without the princess on your back or in your arms.” and if Luna was around, “The cavalry has arrived, Your Highness. He’s a mighty steed. Can get you across plains and mountains without breaking a sweat.”

Nyx had kicked one of Libertus’ clutches under him. He was fine, of course, but the fall did nothing to get him to stop roaring with laughter even as he griped over Nyx’s uncalled reaction.

Though Nyx would never say it aloud, he preferred carrying Luna in his arms.

She felt heavy on his back especially when her sense of directions left plenty to be desired. She had scrambled up his back, warm breasts pressed against his neck, as she pointed with a hand that Nyx could not see in front of him and blurted directions. From her constant fidgeting, he nearly lost his grip on occasion. She flaunted that she knew her way around the Caelum Palace but she got Nyx going in circles into four weeks of the arrangement.

“Really? Is gardening one of your Oracle duties?” Nyx queried as he lowered Luna to a bench next to an overgrown evergreen shrub before handing her the clutch.

The Royal greenhouse and courtyard, though gorgeous and meticulously cared for, were not areas that Nyx spend leisurely. He found the Kingsglaive training rooms and dueling arena to be productive outlets more than what a stroll in the gardens could do for him. He found the yard to be a sweltering environment all year around and an unpleasant reminder of a past he left behind. But the Oracle wished to be accompanied here and he relented. She would have gone there whether he came with her or not.

“His Majesty was gracious to permit me access to his home. I’ve only know of the gardens from the letters Prince Noctis had sent me.” With the assistance from her clutch, she rose from her seat and hobbled carefully to a tool set. “They’re lovelier than I imagined.” She smiled as she pulled on a glove and a hat.

“You have a green thumb for this stuff?” Nyx asked. The Oracle seemed at ease, much more than the victorious yet modest smirk she wore after making a persuasive argument in debates. He found it a hard concept to grasp that a noblewoman was that enthusiastic about horticulture. Nobility tend to rely on contracted laborers for maintenance.

“I’ve raised garden beds back in the villa. We grew our own food and decorated the interior with the flowers.” Luna carried the tool set in her good arm before lowering herself on the loamy soil. “Would you like to join me?” She pointed the handle of a shovel at the glaive standing under the shade of a tree, hands clasped behind his back and poised like a statue.

Nyx took a knee at the Princess Oracle’s side after taking the shovel from her hand. “Okay, what do I do with this?”

“Dig, of course.” She stated in an unpretentious manner, her lilac eyes sparkling with delight.

“Thanks, Captain Obvious.” Nyx rolled his eyes, twirling the small tool in his palm. It was a dull and rusted shovel, nothing like his prized kukris, so it felt inopportune weighing it in his hand like it was a blade. He was a guardsman, only taught of combat and peacekeeping, now ordered to dig. This was one that he felt he had to question.

Luna’s lithe hand encompassed Nyx’s larger and more calloused one as she shepherded him into digging a single shallow hole in the dirt. “Just like that in a straight row.” She said, pointed at the mound. “There are plenty of flowers here so I think we should plant some arugula here. Oh, before I forget.” The Oracle took the floppy sun hat that had resided on her head and put it on the glaive’s. “To shield you from the sun.”

The glaive found himself ensnared at the intimate distance between himself and his charge for his mind to summon up a line of protests about this. He imagined he looked ridiculous, but the hat did shield him from the sun and the Oracle did not have a hint of mischief in her smile. A routine like gardening was natural to her.

“Have you ever gardened before?” Luna chimed in after some time later. “You didn’t need my instruction after all.”

“Maybe once or twice.” Nyx replied with a smirk, taking off the floppy hat to wipe at the perspiration on his brow. “I’m just your average soldier who’s just good with his hands, I guess.”

The two of them had worked in the garden and time had passed by quickly. There was always room for small talk but the silence that filled up every now and then did not feel at all stifling or forced. He was cautious, however, in watching over Luna in making sure she wasn’t exerting herself but the injuries did little to limit her from the hobby. She, in turn, did not file a single complaint when he took over and actually, smiled at his chivalrous acts in her stead. She proposed that they take a break and had asked the glaive to help her to the bench.

After exploring the garden a bit, as far as he was able to with a hobbling Oracle, Nyx had his eye caught on several rose bushes. “Wait here a bit.” He proposed as he gathered a pair of clippers and set out for them. A collection of bushes of various colored roses stood out to him and decisive on the color, he clipped several pink roses and tied the together with a wire twist tie.

“What’s behind your back?” The Oracle asked when he returned.

She was riveted at the sight of the vibrant bouquet.

“I know you’ve probably received flowers before. Nicer than these…” Nyx began, feeling his fortitude crumbling off the edges, but the words poured out of his mouth ceaselessly. He didn’t even understand why he thought roses would be fitting for her, seemed like a cheesy gesture in practice. The glaive felt as though he were a child before her even though they were relatively around the same age. “But they’re for you. If you want.”

Their fingers caressed each other when Luna retrieved the bouquet. Her eyes sparkled like rare gems as though the roses were the most thoughtful gift in all of Eos. “They’re lovely. I love roses.” She closed her eyes as she inhaled the fragrant aroma. Opening them again, her demeanor demure as she set the flowers aside. “Can I see those clippers?”

Nyx took them out of his pocket and relinquished them to her.

Luna clipped off a piece of the evergreen shrub blooming with periwinkle flowers. “Are you familiar with the language of flowers?” She beckoned him to come closer and he complied with a slight bow.

“In the language of flowers, rosemary equates to remembrance.” The Princess Oracle tucked the fragile branch behind his ear before releasing him. “I won’t forget what you’ve done for me and I certainly will never forget you, Nyx Ulric.”


End file.
